Making America Great

Making America Great Again

American companies grow today by consolidation and acquisition, Mergers and takeovers abound as struggling companies seek a way to stay alive. They have forgotten how to grow a business over time and recruit and maintain a loyal workforce. They have forgotten that Loyalty works Both Ways!

Competition and Free Markets, supported by a Free Enterprise system made America Great. Invention and competition helped companies grow while keeping consumer prices affordable. There was always a better/cheaper mousetrap on the horizon.

The past few decades have focused on cost control, containment and short term budgets; which is the focus of most MBA's and accountants. There is little or no Research and Development budgets that provide resources for companies to develop new and innovative projects. Instead companies buy other companies who have done the innovation and development with true talent.

As governments get more corrupt and regulatory intensive, small innovative companies are shut down before they can actually invent something and bring it to market. Small American business was the backbone of the Country but it is fast disappearing with the Middle Class.

Today, too many department heads and managers have lofty degrees from great named schools; mostly degrees in Accounting with MBA's everywhere. Too many of these individuals have never worked in the trenches of the company, got their hands dirty or really understand the company's line of business that built it in the first place.

Where are the Journeymen and Apprentices?

American industry has always has sought the best but cheapest labor. The problem with this is that it is a short term view with no long term objective or ability for any company to maintain growth.

Not too many decades ago, at the dawn of the computer age there was no such thing as a Computer Science Degree; companies trained the brightest and best from within. The vaunted 'Programmer Aptitude Test' of the 1960's was the way people were recruited, trained and began careers. The same thing with electricians, plumbers and auto mechanics. There are few in those professions under 35 and many are way older than that!

When American companies look for workers they hire H1B imported labor, not developing skills but hiring from outside the USA. In 2009, there was an estimated 650,000 H1B's working in the USA with another 65,000 flooding in every year. All this goes on while American's are forced to take lower paid jobs becoming the underemployed masses that used to be the Middle Class.

Young people mortgage their souls and drown in debt paying for college educations that qualify them for nothing. They graduate with massive debt as there are no jobs to 'work their way' through college like so many have done before.

Not enough companies have programs for working students. Programs that will pay for college tuition/books while they work for a company, learning the business and infrastructure. These students would often continue on with the company applying their skills to help the company grow and prosper.

College Degree Not Leading to Jobs

Today, the most common degrees found are not in Science, Engineering. Of the 1,791,000 bachelor’s degrees conferred in 2011–12, the greatest numbers of degrees were conferred in the fields of business (367,000), social sciences and history (179,000), health professions and related programs (163,000), psychology (109,000), and education (106,000).

Note the total lack of degrees focused on Engineering and Sciences where America used to Lead the World. America is Not Training our young people to Build and Invent, but to manage and accommodate existing technologies and businesses.

America can not grow on a foundation of social scientists and accountants. We must encourage the growth of Science and Industry that made America Great. In order to DO that, businesses must refocus on Real Growth and development, training the new generations inventors and builders.